Electric regulator



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J. MGKIM. ELECTRIC REGULATOR. N0. 540,557. Patented June 4, 1895.

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J. MOKIM.

ELECTRIC REGULATOR.

No. 540,557. Patented June 4, 1895.

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JAMES MOKIM, OF VER, KANSAS.

ELECTRIC REGULATGR.

srncrricarroiv forming part of Letters raten; No. 540,557, dated June 4,1895. Application filed September l2; 18952. Serial No. 445,718. (Nomodel.)

To all whom t Hwy concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES MOKIM, of 'Veir, Cherokee county, Kansas, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Regulators, ofwhich the following is a full, clear, and exact description, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention relates to electric regulators, and more particularly tothat class ot' regulators employed to regulate the amount of currentpassing through a system of lights.`

The object of my'invention is to provide a current regulator composed ofa single coil, and a core adjustable therein to any required position,to increase or decrease the fiowof the current uninterruptedly, andcorrespondingly increase or decrease ythe light by imperceptiblegradations. The core employed is of peculiar construction, adaptedespecially to this class of regulators where alternating currents areemployed, and other details of construction for switching or breakingAthe current are employed, as will hereinafter appear by reference tothe accompanying drawings, Whereint Figure l is a diagrammatic view ofan incandescent-light system, showing the location of my regulatortherein. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of a part ofthe exterior casing ofregulatorebox with its switch-lever and terminal segment connections.Fig. 3 is a horizontalsectional elevation in the line 5 5 of Fig. 4.l

Figs. 6, 7, 8, and 9 are views, respectively, of the core and its frame,the switch-lever, the escutcheon -bearing, and the core detailed fromother connections.

ln the drawings, :r and y designate the line wires of an electric lightsystem leading from a dynamo, and connecting said wires are the branchwires y upon which the lights are located.

A, designates the door of a box (part only of which is illustrated)containing my improved regulator, which is composed as follows:

c\-`ck-c designate supports projecting from the inner side of the door,and c-c parallel guide and supporting rods connecting the end rsupportsc.

B, designates my induction coil, which is formed with a passagerectangular in crosssection, and is secured firmly and vertically abovethe'center of the space between the guide-rods c-c2.

D, designates the core, of a peculiar construction, which will behereinafter described, which projects fromthe end-block D of thecore-frame. The opposite end-block Ds of the core frame is connected tothe end-block D', by the sleeves D2, which are arranged parallel withthe core D, and a distance apart sutilcient for them tocircumferentially embrace the guide-rods c, c2, upon which said sleevesare adapted to reciprocate, and at the same time the core D, fits intothe correspondinglyshaped passage of the coil B. Journaled in the doorA, a suitable distance below and about midway the length of theguide-rods cc2 is a shaft G, which also projects through a hub A',secured to the inner side of the door to form an extended bearing, andmounted rigidly upon the inner end of said shaft is a segmental arm F.In order to cause the reciprocatory action of the core carrying frame, Iemploya pair of {iexible straps E and E. The strap E, is attached at oneend to the end-block D3, and at its opposite end, after engaging theperiphery of the segmental arm F, is secured to the side of said armfarthest from said end-block. The other strap, E', is secured to theopposite side of said segmental arm, and after engaging peripherally thesame, is attached at its opposite end to the end-block D.

Itis manifest from the above connection that the movement of thesegmental arm in one direction or the other, causes a correspondingmovement of the corecarrying frame and either moves the core fartherinto the coil or withdraws the same from the coil.

'Projecting from the outer end of the shaft G, is a screw-bolt g, andmounted rigidly upon said screw-bolt is a switch-lever H, and spirallyencircling said shaft and bearing at its opposite ends within the recesst', of the escutcheon plate I, secured to the door, and against saidswitch-lever, is an expansion spring G', which thus prevents theaccidental operation or movement of the core D, by ex- IOO erting apressure against said switch-lever which supports it at any desiredpoint of adjustment. Metal wear-plates g and g3, are secured to theadjacent or opposing faces of the segmental arm F andthe bearing hub A,and are held frictionally together by the action of the spring G.Secured at its inner end to the switch-lever and curving inwardlytherefrom or toward the door, is a spring arm H', having a spur h, atits free end, which engages one or another of the radial corrugationsformed in the face of a plate K, secured to the door and having saidcorrugated surface concentric to the axis of the shaft G. Thesecorrugations may be of any required degree of iineness so as to securethe switch-lever and its connections positively at any point in theiradjustment. The short arm H2, of the switchlever bears with a yieldingpressure upon one or another of the contact-plates L, L and L2, arrangedupon an imaginarycircle corresponding to that described by the short armH2, and projecting inwardly through the door from the contact-plates Land L', respectively, are the binding-posts M and M. The plate L, is ofsufficient length to hold the switch-lever in contact during the entiremovement of the core within the coil. The intermediate plate L, is shortand used when the regulator is cut out of the circuit, and the plate L2,is without electrical connections and is used to cut both the regulatorand the lamps ont of circuit.

The core D is composed of thin sheets d, of soft iron, and sheets d2, ofpaper or other insulating material which are placed alternately side byside and so secured by the transversely extending rivets d3. nectionwill be hereinafter more fully set forth at the end of the statement ofthe operation of the regulator.

The line conductors are connected to the binding-posts l and 2, withinthe box, and from the post l, a wire 4, leads to a post 5. Said post inturn is respectively connected by branch wire 6, through the coil B, tothe binding-post M, of contact-plate L, and by wire 7, to the post M',of contact-plate L. Binding post 2, is connected by a suitable conductorto the post 8, carried by the arm g4, of wearplate g3.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that the current passes frompost l, through the coil B, to the post 2, only when the plate L, iscontacted by the lever H. lVhen said lever is in contact with the plateL, the current passes through the wire 7, therefore cutting the coil outof circuit, and when said lever is in contactwith the plate L2, both thecoil and the lamps are cut out of circuit, because said plate having noelectrical connection, no current flows through the line.

lVhen starting the regulator move the switch from the short end segmentto the intermediate segment. The lamps now burn to their full brilliancyand power, and no current passes through the coil, but as the switchmoves on to the large segment and the core The object of this con-vmoves into the coil the counter current is gradually increased, and thecurrent to the lamps thereby reduced, to any desired extent.

Vhen the core is inclosed to its full extent within the coil, thecounter electro motive force is increased to its utmostlimit and verylittle current flows through the coil. The alternating current beingused, such current flows back and forth through tho coil, and tends tohighly heat the core, due to its rapid magnetization anddemagnetization, and the core hereinbefore described as especiallyadapted to this machine overcomes greatly this tendency.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. An electric regulator, consisting of a hollow coil locatedin analternating current circuit, electric lamps in said circuit, a core, aswitch-lever connected to said core in such manner that the movement ofthe one affects the position of the other, and a contact-plate alsolocated in the circuit and in the path of said switch-lever, so thatwhen the same is in contact with said plate the circuit is coinpleted,and the movement of the lever in one direction or the other and theconsequent movement of the core farther in or out of the coil, eitherdiminishes or increases the brilliancy of the electric lights,substantially as Set forth.

2. An electric regulator, comprising a hollow coil located in analternating currrent circuit, electric lamps therein, a contact-platehaving no electrical connection, contact-plates located also in saidelectric circuit, one of them only being electrically connected tothesaid coil, a switch-lever normally engaging the first-mentionedcontact-plate and thereby cutting the coil and the lamps out of circuit,and a core connected to the switch-lever in such manner that when saidlever engages the first-mentioned plate the core is withdrawn from thecoil and with the operation of said lever to contact with the plate inthe circuit but not connected to the coil, said core approaches but doesnot enter the coil, and when said lever is moved to contact with theplate electrically connected to the coil, said core enters said coil,substantially as set forth.

3. An electric regulator, consisting of a hollow coil located in analternating current circuit, electric lamps therein, a core for saidcoil, a switch-lever connected to said core in such manner that themovement of one affects the position of the other, a contact-plate alsolocated in the circuit and of such length that when the switch-lever isin contact therewith the core is more or less within the coil, and whenthe lever is not in contact therewith the core is entirely withdrawnfrom the coil, a friction-plate, and an arm carried by the switch-leverengaging the same so as to hold said lever from accidental movement atany point in its adjustment, substantially as set forth.

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4;. In an alternating electric current regulator, the combination with aframe having guide-rods, and a hollow coil having a fixed relationthereto, of a frame slidingly mounted upon said guiderods, a corecarried by said frame, a shaft, a `segmental arm mounted thereon, alever mounted upon the opposite end of said shaft, and exible strapsconnecting the segmental arm and the sliding frame in such manner thatthe proper operation of the lever causes the oscillation of said arm andconsequently the reciprocation of said core-carrying arm, substantiallyas set forth.

5. In an alternating electric current regulator, the combination with aframe having guide-rods, and a hollow coil having a fixed relationthereto, ot' a frame slidingly mounted

